Current Status of Routine Screening in India
摘要
Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer in India and also the most common cause of cancer-related mortality. The late detection and presentation of breast cancer adversely impact clinical prognosis leading to an increased burden of care and poor survival rates. Various modalities are available for breast cancer screening and its early detection. The chapter gives a brief overview of the common breast cancer screening modalities including their method, indications, and guidelines, especially in the Indian context. Mammography has been the gold standard and a well-accepted method worldwide for screening of breast cancer. However, its applicability is limiting in the Indian context due to the huge target population, screen burden, epidemiological variations and inherent high breast density among Indian women. Although self-breast awareness (SBE) and clinical breast examination (CBE) is not widely recommended as a primary screening modality, they are better suited for population-based screening of Breast cancer and awareness generation in developing countries like India. There are two programmatic approaches for breast cancer screening—opportunistic and population-based. The opportunistic screening is offered to eligible women visiting the practitioner for any other health-related issues. India has initiated population-based screening for cancers of breast, uterine cervix and oral cavity under National Programme for Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NP-NCD). There is a lack of India-specific risk data, assessment tools, standard guidelines, and route maps for screen-positive women. Extensive research and large prospective cohorts are needed to validate the newer and innovative modalities as well. There are wide variations in Breast cancer screening strategies when compared globally as detailed in the chapter.